“Interdependence of all things” is not a phrase that comes quickly to mind these days. The idea of mutual reliance–equanimity in relationship–seems far-fetched, a compassionate heart more a sunset than a dawn.

Like any line in the sand, a new tide washes away what was once firm, separating sand into grains. Ebb and flow. Any and all forms of life last only so long.

It’s not the form, it’s the flow.

Still, these days feel more like the sands of separation than the flow of life. In my separateness, balance eludes. I start and stop, going nowhere.

Stuck in my own sentences, I ask others for theirs. I am given “clear and immutable truth” more than once but like my own, it has a grainy feel.

Do not think that the knowledge you presently possess

is changeless, absolute truth. Avoid being narrow-minded

and bound to present views. Truth is found in life and

not merely in conceptual knowledge.

Thich Nhat Hanh

Interdependence opens me to the flow of life. It is right action as opposed to reaction. Huge difference.

In reacting, my heart closes as my head pronounces one judgment after another. I look only to the future, unaware of the collateral damage to myself and others–a boomerang in the making.

Right action is a thoughtful response of strength and purpose, timeless. It is making a stand, a mindful in-the-moment response with all of my being.

The compassionate heart rises to the spark of connection. It does not happen quickly yet I am older, and aging is an asset. Experience gives me an edge.

Living in the moment is being immersed in each action–that’s mindfulness. It takes practice, for me it’s a lifetime one.

Living in the present is not being free of the past or the future. The present gives me a glimpse of both—a look back and ahead–it “interexists” between the two (Thich Nhat Hanh).

My past is my library. My future is today’s story.

Aim for Even posts offer equanimity a dose at a time. No day or dose is ever the same, even if the aim is. You may read about the origins of Aim for Even here or on this site’s About page.

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2 thoughts on “It’s Not Form, It’s Flow”

interdependence: not just a zen concept. The ancient ideas of Buddhism and Vedanta are being continuously verified by the most advanced scientific research, i.e. every single thing in the universe is connected to every other single thing in a web of energy, and there is no absolute separation between “ME” and everything else.

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